“Pretty precise for crimes of passion,” Ruby said. Murders motivated by bursts of anger or passion were not so calculated. They didn’t involve coincidentally avoiding buses or intentionally changing the position of the knife.

“They’re not completely the same,” Gabe reasoned. “The killer had to do this before the bus came by. Barely enough time to stab someone thirteen times and get away, let alone mimic a pattern on purpose.”

Ruby chewed on that a moment, almost annoyed that he had a point. That point led to one conclusion that fit into her slowly forming theory.

“He practiced.”

It was the only explanation she could come up with on the spot. A student of Vallejo’s studied his work, trained himself up to being quick and efficient, and finally re-enacted the crime. She could see it. She could see there being people who would resort to this sort of hero worship of Lucky 13.

“Come on, Hunter,” Gabe scoffed, “he practiced? Don’t you think you’re grasping at straws here? What did he practice on? A melon?”

Ruby had too many questions on her mind. How did the killer know Vallejo’s pattern? What would someone practice on? Why perform Vallejo’s first murder twice? Ruby didn’t have an answer for any of them. Yet. Vallejo played games. Ruby needed more time to understand how he pulled it off. She definitely needed to have more answers before she raised her theory out loud.

It was like Ruby cut off the head of the hydra and two more had sprouted in Vallejo’s place.

“I’ve seen something like this before…” Ruby trailed off.

“Yeah, on the other table,” Gabe pressed. “Either there’s a connection between these two women nobody’s put together yet, or maybe the guy in that alley saw Vanessa on the news and got inspired.”

“Okay, let’s say you’re right, there were two killers. Then the connection has to be between them, not between the women,” Ruby said. “The news didn’t give a roadmap of the wound pattern.”

The news hadn’t given out the roadmap of the eerily similar Vallejo murder either.

“Can we entertain some other possibilities before we take a cult or conspiracy route?” Gabe said.

He thought she was crazy. Ruby could feel it, feel his disdain, the silently held opinion that she had a hang-up she couldn’t get over. Her long-held focus on one mastermind left her inflexible, or maybe she was right, and the only reason she stuck to her guns was because the connection was so obvious.

Gabe may not have been a rookie, but just like so many of the other partners Ruby had driven away, either he was biding his time waiting for her crack again, or he would ask for a new partner.